Tea.
Offstage Interactions Ting Wu was once again dressed in her cream muslin shirt, tough trousers and long over coat. It was a much like a gun slinger in the wild West might wear, but with a British twist. Her coat wasn't a duster but a black trench coat and her hat an over sized bowler. Ting Wu placed the loose leaves of her tea into a delicate porcelain tea pot full of water. With a quick wave of her fan, it began to boil merrily. She poured the golden brew into equally delicate cups, and went around handing them out. Dr. Opheus and his daughter were looking out over the edge, while Colonel Gentleman was piloting the air ship. Each took their cup in turn. Coming round to Verdie, Ting Wu offered a cup and saucer to her. “How are you doing?”she asked. Verdie wiped her greasy fingers on a rag and accepted the cup gingerly, and then was at a loss of what to do with it. In her mother's uncomfortable parlor, there was decorum to be followed; did it apply on an airship with her lady employer watching her? Her hands shook, the airship lurched and she splashed hot tea on the letter she had started to her sister. Dabbing frantically at the mess, Verdie jumped to her feet. Her face burned and she muttered, "I'm well, thank you ma'am." Ting Wu pulled a fan from her pocket, and gave it a graceful wave. Droplets of tea pulled off the page, leaving only smudged ink behind. "Blast the Colonel, he can never seem to keep this thing from rocking," the tea floated past and over the side. Ting Wu reached for the pot perched precariously on a table and poured Verdie a second cup. "You should try it, I'm not one for ghastly English teas, but this one is passable." She took a sip of her own. "What I really meant when I came over here was, Are you over whelmed? This probably seems like a lot, and I know the Colonel can have a way with words..." Ting Wu's gaze shifted over to the man at the helm. "But you can't let him boss you around. You give him any advantage and from that point on he always expects the advantage." She winked at Verdie with a friendly smile over the rim of her cup. Verdie dabbed ineffectually at the now-dry page. She studied Ting carefully, trying to decide if the friendliness on her face meant anything. Her features were so odd, delicately beautiful. Rumors spoke of the Orient as a deadly place, full of intrigue and exotic mysteries. Was there some problem between her employers? Was Ting trying to manipulate her also? Or was it a genuine warning that Verdie should heed? She swallowed her suspicions. As long as she got to handle this wondrous airship and as long as she could send money to her family, surely squabbles between her employers were none of her concern. But perhaps it was time to learn more about her employers. "It is a beautiful ship, ma'am. Did you purchase it in Paris?" Ting Wu choked on a sip of tea, and quickly covered her mouth with the back of her palm. "We..." she set the cup down by the teapot, "acquired," the word was long and drawn out. "it in France, yes. But I think it was more on route to the Ottoman empire. I couldn't be sure though, the train stopped rather in the middle of no where." Ting Wu, smiled reflectively at the memory. "It's been an unusual couple of months. But what about you? You've an accent I don't recognize. I thought it heard that you are from the America's. Tell me, have you seen "Cow men"? I hear they are dashing rogues, so unlike English gentlemen or my own people's honorable shogun. Lady Astrid Ashford, once had an adventure in the America's. She was solving the murder of her sisters finance and was romanced by a "Cow man. He was so brusque!" Ting Wu clasped her hand together in front of her heart, in an odd parody of some English woman she had seen. It was more comical then dramatic. Verdie wondered what she should answer first. Were "cow men" like "wolf men" or something different? And should she recognize the Lady Astrid Ashford? She opted for caution. "Yes, I grew up in America but my mother is English. Uh. What do you mean by acquired? The air ship is surely not stolen property, is it," she trailed off uncertainty. In an instant, her mother's voice, admonishing her to "be good and stay out of trouble" flew through her head. Certainly joining a gang of airship pirates was not what she had in mind! “It's a rather long and convoluted story, but to make short work of it. Men who would do us great bodily harm abandoned it when we gave them the thrashing they so rightly deserved. So, we acquired it like I had said previous. It was never purchased, but it was not stolen.” Ting Wu allowed silence to lap over their conversation as she examined Verdi. Her stance was uncertain, even self conscious as she hunched her body into her self and her lip partly nibbled on with out, it seemed, Verdie's knowledge. Perhaps she was scaring the poor girl She reached out and placed a small hand on Verdie's arm. “I should let you get back to your letter. What I really wanted you to know was that, I feel you have made the right choice in coming with us, and should you need for anyone to talk to, know that I will always listen.” Ting Wu gave the girl a reassuring pat. “If there is one thing I know for certain, it's how it feels to be strange and different.” Ting Wu gathered up her cup and teapot once more. Turning to leave, she called over her shoulder. “By the by, you've got an amazing right punch, we shall have to compare notes some time, you and me. And drink your tea, it will warm you.” Ting Wu walked off to make rounds once more and refill cups, before settling on a bench with a book titled, Lady Ashford and the Case of Mistaken Identity. * Written by Erica and Sarah via Email